Hot-air furnace



(No Model.) 7 Sheets-Sheet 1.

D. S. RICHARDSON.

HOT AIR FURNAGE.

No. 415,820. Patented Nov; 26, 1889.

4 5615." fizywwara 7 Sheets-Sheet 2.

(No Model.)

1). s. RICHARDSON.

HOT AIR FURNACE.

Patented Nov. 26, 1889.

N. PETERS, PholoLilhographer. Washinginn. ILC

7 Sheets-Sheet 3.

(No Model.)

D. S. RICHARDSON.

HOT AIR FURNACE.

. Patented Nov. 26, 1889.

N. PETERS, m'wum m her. Washingwn. mC.

(No Model.) I I 7 SheetsShee't 4. D. S. RICHARDSON.

HOT AIR FURNACE. No. 415 820. PatentedNov. 26, 1889.

In yentor:

(No Model.) 7 SheetsSheet 5.

D. s. RICHARDSON. HOT AIR FURNACE.

No. 415,820. Patented Nov. 26, 1889.

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77 55 w; 56 Zn .7/67ZZJ7. a; @kfim/m 6M Q'M WV (No Model.) .7 Sh eets--Sheet 6.

' D. S. RICHARDSON.

' HOT AIR. FURNACE.

N0. 415,820. Patented NOV. 26, 1889.

Ill!viilillltldillillill l 1 kiww W m 77i'tnaas'w: fm 4! w (No Model.) 7 Sheets-Sheet 7. D. S. RICHARDSON.

HOT AIR FURNACE.

No. 415,820. Patented Nov. 26, 1889.

' Whwmsr jrmerzz'ww UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

DlVIGHT S. RICHARDSON, OF BROOKLYN, NElV YORK.

HOT-Al R FU RNAC E.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 415,820, dated November 26, 1889. Application filed Au ust 27, 1889- Serial No. 322,075. (No model.)

To all whmn it may concern:

Be it known that I, DWIGHT S. RICHARDSON, a citizen of the United States, residing in the cityof Brooklyn, in the county of Kings, in the State of New York, have invented a new and useful Hot-AirFurnace, of which the following is a correct description.

The invention relates, generally, to that class of domestic heaters which ordinarily are placed in a basement or cellar and are inclosed by a casing or air-chamber which receives a supply of air from without the building, which, after being heated, is discharged through suitable conducting-pipes into the various upper apartments which are to be warmed.

The invention relates particularly to various novel details in the construction and to various novel combinations of parts, whereby it is made practicable to conduct the volatile products of combustion through flues of great length and extensive area, thereby thoroughly utilizing the heat contained in such products, whereby the products of combustion are caused to pass horizontally along the sides and rear of the furnace and to pass and repass in a zigzag course along the walls of rear vertical air-pipes, and whereby escape of dust or injurious gases into the air-spaces upon opening the direct-draft damper is avoided.

In the accompanying drawings, which constitute a part of-this specification, Figure 1 represents a vertical longitudinal central section of the furnace as in the line it u of Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a horizontal section in the line v zof Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a horizontal section in the line w w in Fig. 1. Fig. 4: is a vertical transverse central section in the line as :r in Figs. 1 and 2. Fig. 5 is a vertical section of the furnace as in line y y in Figs. 2 and 3. Fig. 6 is a vertical transverse section in the line 2 z in Figs. 1 and 2. Fig. 7 shows afront elevation of the furnace. Fig.8 represents a detail in horizontal section of the rear portion of the furnace, showing amodification in the construction of the clearing-openings. Fig. 9 represents a detail in horizontal section of the rear portion of the furnace, showing a modification in the manner of forming the zigzag fines.

The ash-pit section a and the fire-pot section a of the furnace A may be of ordinary construction. At the rear and sides of the fire-pot 0. and extending from bottom to top of the furnace is an air-warming passage a Outside the passage or chamber a and extending upwardly frointhe plane of the top of the fuel-chamber to the bottom of the upper horizontal line is the lower or primary horizontal flue A, which, as clearly seen in Fig. 2, extends from the left of the fire-pot along the outer surface of the air-warming chamber or passage a to the roar of the furnace, where it is expanded or enlarged horizontally to an extent corresponding with the dimensions of the rear extension A of the furnace, through which extend the vertical air-warming pipes or fiues a a and o Continuing beyond the vertical pipes a a e the primary horizontal fine A extends along the opposite side of the furnace until, near the front of the furnace, it terminates at the front extremity of the horizontal diaphragm d, by which it is separated from the upper or secondary horizontal flue A which, beginning at this point, extends in a direction opposite to that of the primary horizontal flue directly over and along the top of such fine to the opposite side of the furnace, where, continuing beyond and inwardly around the front extremity of the air-warming chamber or passage a and along the vertical deflecting-plate a, it is merged in the overhanging rarefying and accelerating flue-chamber A the bottom of which, as will be seen, is in a plane with the upper extremity of the combustion-chamber A and the curved vertical portion of which extends inwardly from the transversely-central line of the furnace at the front of the combustion-chamber to the horizontal center or axis of such combustion-chamber and beyond the same in a reverse curve to a point coincident with the front extremity of the air-warming chamber or passage a It will be seen that the walls of the vertical air-pipes a a in the rearward extension A of the furnace are at the front directly incontact with the vertical rear wall of the airwarming chamber or passage a and that the vertical rear wall of the intermediate air-pipe a is .in direct contact with the inner face of the rear wall of such extension. Through Too this in-and-out arrangement of the air-warming pipes (t of and a in connection with the extension, both the primary flue A and the secondary flue A are elongated and are converted into zigzag lines, of which the airpipes fa" a and a constitute either one or both of the vertical boundaries.

In the bottom plate of the overhanging rarefyin g and accelerating flue-chamber A is an opening a, which is provided with a correspondin g pivoted damper or closing-plate a which, as here shown, is operated by a handle a the shank or spindle a of which extends through the vertical wall of the expanding and accelerating flue-chamber, the handle being wholly within the combustionchamber, and consequently accessible only upon opening the door D of the same. It will be obvious that the damper or closing-plate a might be pivoted centrally instead of at one side, as shown in the drawings, and that without the exercise of inventWe skill a slidable plate or damper might be employed instead of a pivoted one.

At the right of the fuel and combustion chambers the space leading to the horizontal flues A A already described, between the vertical air-warming chamber or passage a and the outer wall to of the furnace proper is a vertical closing-plate P, in which is a clearing-opening 0, for the removal from the fines of accumulations of ashes and other refuse, the openin being provided with a closelyfitting closing-plate If desired, the plate P may be bodily detachable.

The rarefying and accelerating flue-chamber A terminates at its outer extremity near the front of the furnace in an opening which is provided with a collar 0 to receive a suitable exit or uptake pipe for the discharge of the products of combustion.

As seen in Fig. 1, a pipe-collar 0, having a closing-cap 0 is provided at the right front of the furnace at a point coincident with the secondary horizontal flue A At the rear of the furnace clearing-passages o and o extend through the air-casing C, the exterior air-chamber C, and the wall to of the furnace and afford access to the tines A and A when it is desired to clear the same of refuse. Upon the rear upper extremity of the fire-pot or fuel-chamber a, which is preferably of iron, as shown, and in front of the air-warming chamber or passage a is placed a guard g, of fire-brick or analogous material, which is concentric with the fire-pot, and which operates to protect the body of such passage against injury through contact of masses of incandescent coals.

In the operation of the furnace, at the outset, upon lighting the fire, the damper a at the bottom of the rarefying and accelerating chamber A is opened until the fuel is well zontal fines are well warmed up. The damper being thereupon closed, the products of combustion will pass from the combustion-cham her into and through the primary horizontal flue A, enveloping in their progress the lower half of the vertical air-warming pipes a a a, when, reaching the front extremity of the diaphragm d at the right of the furnace, they pass upwardly, over the end of such diaphragm, into the flue A and along the same in a direction opposite to that in which the primary flue is traversed to the overhang in g raref yin g-chamber A, through which they pass to the exit-flue at the left front of the furnace.

Although in this illustration of my invcntion I have shown and described three airwarming tubes in the rear extension A of the furnace, it is apparent that the zigzag horizontal tlues might be produced by two vertical air-fines only, or by four, five, or a greater number. It will be understood, also, that the diaphragm d, which separates the fines A A might be either above or below the mid-height of the flue-space without affecting the principle of their operation.

It will be apparent that the effect of the exposure of the flue-chamber A upon its side and bottom plates to the directimpact of the hottest portion of the volatile products of combustion is to produce a high degree of rarefaetion in the contents of such chamber, and thereby greatly accelerate the movement of smoke and gases from the combustionchamber into and through the primary and secondary horizontal flues A and A If in any situation the circulation through the two horizontal flues A and A should be found not sufficiently active to develop the full heating capacity of the furnace, the diaphragm d, which is made readily detachable, will be removed, converting the two fines into one, and the cap 0 which ordinarily closes the right exit-opening, will be detached from its pipe-collar c and applied upon the collar 0 of the left exitopening at the outer extremity of the flue-chamber A thereby closing the exit from that chamber and converting the right front opening into an exit-flue. In all ordinary situations, however, the temperature of the chamber A will be such as to create a strong draft through both of the horizontal fines and most effectually utilize the heat evolved from the incandescent fuel.

In the ordinary application of direct-draft dampers the operating-rod extends through the wall of the combustion-chamber, the orifice through which the rod is moved in operating the damper being necessarily larger than the body of the rod itself, and thus permitting a continuous leakage of deleterious gases from the combustion-chamber into the surrounding air-chamber, and thence into the various apartments of the building, to the serious injury and inconvenience of all the occupants thereof. Under the construction which I have described such results are rendered impossible.

If desired, the air-warming chamber or passage a instead of terminating at a point a short distance in advance of the central plane of the furnace, as indicated in full lines in Fig. 2, may extend forward to the point indicated in dotted lines in the same figure, the effect being to somewhat increase the longitudinal extent of the primary fine A and to ctorrespondingly increase its heating capac- 1 7y.

In practice the diaphragm (Z between the fines A and A may be in whole or in part of fire brick, steatite, or other refractory material, as described in application Serial No. 287,073, filed by me in the United States Patent Oflice October 3, 1888.

In the drawings the feathered arrows indieate the direct exit of smoke from the combustion-chamber.

I claim as of my invention 1. In a hot-air furnace, the combination,

with the combustion-chamber, of a lower or primary horizontal smoke-flue, an upper or secondary horizontal smoke-flue, which directly overlies the primary smoke-fine, and a rarefying and accelerating fine-chamber, which extends into the combustion-chamber and which overhangs the fuel-chamber, the lower or primary horizontal fiue receiving products of combustion from the combustion-chamber and discharging them into the upper or secondary flue, and the secondary flue discharging. the products into the overhanging flue-chamber.

2. In a hot-air furnace, the combination, with the combustion-chamber, of a primary horizontal fiue which extends along the sides and rear of the furnace within the exterior air-chamber of the same, a secondary horizontal flue upon the primary fine, and vertical air-pipes in the rear portion of the furnace, extending through the horizontal fines and converting the central portion of each of the horizontal fines into horizontal'zigzag passages.

In a hot-air furnace, the combination,

with the combustion-chamber, of a rear extension, vertically-placed air-pipes which extend from bottom to top of such extension, a lower horizontal smoke-flue which envelops the lower portion of the vertical air-pipes,

and an upper horizontal flue which envelops the upper portion of the vertical air-pipes, the air-pipes being arranged alternately in and out, as described, and thereby converting the central rear portion of the smoke-fines into zigzag passages.

4:. In a hot-air furnace, the combination, with the combustion-chamber, of an air-warming chamber or passage which directly embraces such combustion-chamber at its sides and rear and a lower and an upper horizontal smoke-flue which directly embrace the airwarming chamber at its sides and rear, the lower flue being open at one extremity to receive smoke from the combustion-chamber, and the upper flue being closed against direct admission from the combustion-chamber, but adapted to receive the products of combustion from the lower flue.

5. A hot-air furnace which is provider]. with left and right smoke-exit openings, and which is provided, also, with lower and upper horizontal smoke-fines, which are separated by a detachable diaphragm and which have communication with the combustion -chamber and with the exit-openings, whereby when the diaphragm is in place the smoke will pass first under and then over the same to one of the exit-openings, and whereby when the diaphragm is detached the two fines are converted into one flue, through which the products of combustion pass to the other exitopening.

6. In a hot-air furnace, the combination of a direct smoke-exit passage and a damper which closes the entrance to such exit-passage, the handle or operatingrod of the damper extending through the wall of the passage into the combustion-space and being accessible only through the fuel-supply opening.

7. In a hot-air furnace, a flue-chamber which overhangs the fuel-chamber, and which has a dampered opening for direct exit, the damper being accessible foroperation only through the fuel-supply opening.

DIVIGIIT S. RICHARDSON.

Witnesses:

JAMES B. TAYLOR, THos. EDMONSTON. 

